


Life hurts but it's how you care for the wounds that turns them in to cool scars with good stories or not

by Sortiara



Series: Storytelling Fragments [1]
Category: Gintama
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Family Bonding, Gen, M/M, Prompt Fic, Recovery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-17
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-19 15:21:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18137489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sortiara/pseuds/Sortiara
Summary: A collection of injury one word prompts for the Kiheitai. Some angsty, some happier, some longer and some quite short, all about the space family (and maybe some more to come).





	1. A: Ambush

Catching the three of them unawares takes some major skill, Takasugi could almost call it impressive, pinning him and his crew down so effectively. The Bakufu hired amanto though clearly have no idea who they’re really up against. That ignorance amazingly let them get close without anyone knowing what information they were acquiring. 

But Takasugi also realizes as he’s got Bansai and Matako against his back, these ones never heard the saying that corned animals are the most dangerous ones. Especially when said corner is made up of the people who are watching your back, and the same people you just might fight to the death to protect.

It’s a slaughter, of course, within minutes of the assassins jumping out at them. Matako’s pistols take down three on first sight. By the time they’re backed together Bansai has another four laced so tight with strings it’s amazing they haven’t noticed yet that they’re ticking bombs for their team mates. And Takasugi has slit the first ones throat that had gotten near him. The blood is pooling around all their feet as everyone eyes each other up across this empty warehouse district, steel and iron and plenty of hiding places. He smiles. “You lot really didn’t do your homework, did you?”

Matako snaps out a laugh that’s all teeth. And in the next second there’s a hum of strings and metal and that’s their cue. Takasugi jumps forward through the circle of them and cuts them down even as some turn on their own, puppets, and Matako aims at anything between the eyes that moves too fast for her liking. Bansai actually gives an amused chuckle at the carnage once the blood settles and they’re all accounted for, he’s got blood splashed on his shamisen wires again but not even a bruise in sight. “I couldn’t even hear them over you two.”

That sounds about right.


	2. B: Broken

“It’s fine I’m not that badly hurt I daresa-!” He goes to stand and his ankle gives out in an instant with his weight and he’s on his knees in a moment. Fuck that is painful.

“Famous last words, senpai.” Matako looks down at him with a steady look. “You probably fractured an ankle, I did that a few times as a kid making jumps from that high up.”

He laughs. “Aren’t you still a kid, Matako?”

She snickers, to be fair she is still growing. They need to get new kimonos and shoes for her on a near monthly basis. And as he can see from this spot on the ground with the rubble of the building they just trashed around him, the bottom hem of this longer one is already burnt and starting to get above her boot tops. “Yeah but I know how to land. What kinda assassin doesn’t know how to escape a burning building?”

“One who is usually, very lucky I daresay.” He puts his weight on his good leg and stands, presses a hand to his hurt ankle to test how bad the injury is. The bone practically creaks and he winces. Bansai curses under his breath, walking back isn’t going to be easy and they’re a good hike from their rendezvous point with the Kiheitai, maybe he could send her ahead in case anyone tried to follow them...

“Damn it, you really broke it I think. Here.” In a second Matako slips under his arm so he’s leaning on her shoulder and she tugs them forward. She still barely comes up to his chest as is but she’s strong and stubborn. He’s so surprised he doesn’t move and almost makes them both fall to Matako’s annoyance. “Senpai! C’mon we have to get going so Shinsuke-sama can hear about everything!” They stumble for a few more steps before he gets the rhythm of it and then they’re moving. He smiles softly and nods.

“Sorry, let's go back then.”


	3. C: Concussion

They’re terrorists, they’re used to making things blow sky high. After the first concussion or two everyone actually starts paying attention to explosive and weapons safety. Or ends up dead, but fools have never been to Takasugi’s preference anyways so not many mourn morons who can’t be bothered to think decently.

Accidents however, are always worrying, and leave whoever gets hurt finds themselves in the infirmary and any number of the crew hovering. This time however, the hallway is empty. One of their officers got hurt but no one wants to get on the bad side of Shinsuke or Bansai while they silently stand vigil. Until finally, Matako wakes up.

She’s fine in bed, chattering happily at Bansai as their medics tell them all the details. Moderate concussion, nothing new tech and medicine can’t heal with a weeks rest and a couple sessions of check ups through the month to make sure nothing worse happened. Matako though is having none of it once they recommend bed rest. “I’m supposed to be on a job in three days, I can’t be in bed!”

“Matako you won’t be able to function if their drugs wear off, you need to heal.”   
  
“Like hell I’m taking that from you senpai! You never stop moving even when you’re hurt!”   
  
That catches Takasugi’s attention. He exhales and the small bit of smoke betrays how little he’s breathing right now. “He’s been doing what?”   
  
The both of them feel chills go down their spines. “She’s making things up Shinsuke, she’s concussed remember?” He tries to shrug it off fast before Shinsuke realizes how much his second and third in command push themselves. That's going to come back to bite him he can just feel it.   
  
“Senpai! Shinsuke-sama I thought you knew?”   
  
“Matako!” There’s a hand slapped over her mouth in the next instance. He does not budge even when she tries to bite him.

“Matako, you can shadow Bansai around the ship. That’s it. Consider your mission on hold.”   
  
She wilts but she can’t argue with him so she sighs and nods.

One day later the world is spinning enough that she’s had to sit down in the hallways of the ship three times and on the fourth Bansai just sighs and looks at her. Knees to her chest and biting her lip to keep from complaining, she looks like she did four years ago when they first met her. Too small, and too young. And he isn’t going to be any less busy today so he can’t stop moving. He sighs and scratches his head for a bit in thought before helping her up and shuffling her along down the hall. “C’mon, I have a better job for Matako.”   
  
“Senpai, I’m fine really, I don’t want to go back to the infirmary or my room! It’s just...miserable like that.”   
  
He tilts his head at her. That’s something she never said before. “And feeling your head barely working is better than being isolated like that?”   
  
Matako nods, her pony tail bobbing, and she immediately shuts her eyes and winces at the motion. But he can guess the rest of her words. She didn’t want to seem weak in front of Shinsuke, she didn’t want to be dead weight, but mostly, from how she looks sadder now than she had when in her infirmary bed, he guesses she’d just ask to keep following him around. So she’s not alone.

She’s got her eyes closed while they walk though so she doesn’t realize what room they’ve come to as Bansai keys open the airlock of this section and the outer door slides open. Not until the soft scent of smoke and lunch washes over her. Matako’s eyes squint open and Bansai ushers her inside. She blinks at the traditional style room and meets eyes with Takasugi, both of them looking a bit surprised at this new development.   
  
“Shinsuke, I found someone to help you draft the next project you wanted done.”    
  
“Bansai-” He starts up but then he takes one look at Matako as she kneels on the closest cushion, unsure but still needing the chance to sit again. He sighs quietly at the sight of her being so stubborn and gets the gist of it fast. He’s had his share of injury time spent during the war after all. “Tell the kitchen to send her lunch here. With extra ink and paper.” Takasugi takes a drag and exhales another cloud of smoke, then places it aside on to the nearby tray beside the untouched meal. “The medics told you no screens, but is writing fine?”   
  
Matako nods slowly and her smile comes back, lighting her up like she’d never been sad. “I can write! I’d be happy to write anything you need, Shinsuke-sama!” She leans forward with her hands on her knees eagerly.   
  
Takasugi shares a look with Bansai, who nods. “Guess you’ll be here until well after dinner then. I want rough drafts of all the letters we’re sending to my old war connections by the end of today.”

Matako looks elated and she’s already talking excitedly about ideas and asking questions as Bansai leaves them. By the time he returns to their leaders quarters for their evening talk, the place is littered with scraps of paper with both of their handwritings and calligraphy on it, there’s a stack of finished sheets, and Takasugi is perched across the room in the window seat with his pipe. From there the smoke practically goes directly in to the vents and never makes it around the rest of the room. Matako is curled up, sitting up against a floor seat, the remains of two meals in front of her along with the cup her medication doses come in, fast asleep. There’s a light blanket over her lap as well.   
  
Bansai smiles and goes to the other side to pour a drink for the two of them. “I’m amazed you let her stay. And shared a meal. Matako would never have dreamed of that when we first met her.” 

“Concussions bite, and she helped even though she could have had a fair month off to recover.” Takasugi says. He looks over at her for a moment and sighs again. “Thanks for bringing her. Think we can keep her from stressing herself out if I make up more work?” Takasugi looks over at Bansai and blinks as he looks him up and down. “You’re spilling your sake.”  
  
Bansai tips the cup back up to keep from dripping the liquor down his hand and hurries to drink half. But the surprise is still in his eyes even as he recovers. “I daresay she’ll be happy to keep helping around you until she’s better.” He chuckles. He hadn’t expected that offer at all, he thought he’d be starting this pattern himself, but it seems he doesn’t need to interfere as much as he had worriedly thought. They know how to take care of each other once they realize.  
  
But he freezes at the next sip as Takasugi looks over at him. "So, what was that Matako was saying about you working even after you were injured?"


	4. D: Deprived

“Shinsuke-sama…”

He sighs, taking his eye away from the seam in the steel wall for a moment, and regrets that as the dry feeling in his mouth becomes even more noticeable. “I know. Don’t think about it. You’ll just make yourself crazy.”   
  
They’d had men on a stakeout, check ins were supposed to be few and far between due to all the surveillance this close to the emperor. But things were supposed to switch around and get easier so Takasugi had gone with Matako on her check, curious to see for himself all the hustle and bustle of royalty and their guards with all the political backstabbing flying every which way. He hadn’t expected to find their people dead, the place being sweeped, and the entire city center to go in to lockdown.

They’ve been flitting around the back alleys and empty warehouses for the last twelve hours. Food and water hasn’t been worth the risk with the thousands of guards or the chance of missing their ride out of here, they can’t even get close to a garden shed with a faucet. 

It’s been a few years since he had to go without water for so long. Matako isn’t used to it either, she’s clamped down on any instinct to complain but both of them are starting to show signs of dehydration. Takasugi regrets smoking for so long today, regrets not having an extra water this morning, regrets every cup of sake he’s ever had in his life. His thoughts are already starting to circle around water and there’s a headache stabbing in to his skull behind his eyes. Matako grumbles and stretches her legs again, each run between hiding spots puts a cramp up her leg that she keeps trying to get rid of.

Takasugi slumps down from the little window, satisfied that the coast is somewhat clear, and sits with his back against the cool wall and tries to pretend that it feels refreshing. He’s not fooling himself and now on top of water his memories are tugging back to the war when their supplies went bad or a stream turned out to be poisoned. He sighs again and swallows, grimacing at the bitter feeling of nothing. Matako looks at him from her spot on the other side of the entryway and seems about to say something, but goes back to counting her ammo. He watches each bullet gleam in her fingers and he can’t help a spark of pride at how easily she handles her weapons.

Then the sound of footsteps reaches him. Takasugi goes still and waves, pointing and Matako stops and listens as well. She muffles her guns and clicks the safety off without a sound and he nods over at her. The rest of the bullets she stuffs into her holster quickly as he holds his sword, working the blade from the sheath silently with one hand as he pushes against the wall with his other to stand.   
  
Standing however, makes the room want to spin and makes him feel like he’s drifting, and he can hear the blood in his ears, then his heart going too fast, too hard. It covers up the sound of the approaching footsteps long enough for him to worry if he’s at his limit already, blinking hard to clear his vision and steady himself. He grits his teeth and the world goes back to normal and its then he realizes there's more than one set of footsteps now. Damn it with so many guards they must have covered the rest of the city already and pinned them.

Matako stands and, tilts her head closer to the door for a bare moment. Then she scrambles back and reaches up to one of the warehouse slits, kicking herself up on to a pile of boxes and bins to look out the higher vantage point. “Matako!” He hisses at her as loud as he dares. What is she doing? She should know better than this and she can’t shoot safely from up there, can’t shoot at all unless they want to alert the whole damn place.

But she’s not listening, just jumps back down and rushes over, grabbing his wrist tightly and hauling them outside. Takasugi squints at the light, headache slamming in to him tenfold, as Matako waves. “Senpai! Over here! We’re right here!”    
  
Ah. 

Bansai whirls at the noise and the expression on his face goes from stern to, something unreadable, to calm. Relief? Surely not. But perhaps. If he didn’t have his shades on Takasugi could read him better, but right now in his state he couldn’t even tell friend from foe at a distance. “Shinsuke, Matako! We heard there was trouble hours after you left but...you’re both safe, of course you are.”   
  
Though he notices Matako’s refusal to let go of their commanders arm and Takasugi’s own tired explanation of the last day as the rest of the crew is recalled. It’s another hour to get their transport synced up with them, and then another hour on top of that to get back ever so slowly to their safe house. But once inside their current short term home, with cool air, the two of them really feel their day start to hurt. It’s a relieved moment when they can sit by the table and start shucking off their jackets and setting their weapons aside. And finally in private, Bansai can press the back of his hand quickly to their foreheads, so fast anyone else wouldn’t have even felt or noticed the brushing touch, but Takasugi glares at him. He hopes they’re not feverish but he can’t really tell. And Bansai doesn’t say much more.   
  
“Anyone normal would have fainted hours ago, you two are more stubborn than anyone else in the world. I’m sure water is the first thing you’ll be wanting, yes?”

“Water sounds perfect.”

“And dinner!! I’m starving!” Well, at least she’s fine. Takasugi rolls his eye and Bansai just laughs softly as he goes to call around for what they need. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one wandered around a bit but, such is prompt writing. I had also forgotten to have water this morning when I was writing this. Remember to hydrate folks!


	5. E: Exhaustion

Takasugi yawns as he drys his hair, sitting down as he ruffles the towel through the strands. He ties his yukata tighter and grabs for an extra robe with his free hand to keep the chill off his neck now that he’s outside the warm bathroom. Had he nearly nodded off in the bath? Perhaps. But that was the boon of being the commander and having private rooms. No one had to see you debate the merits of sleeping in the bath versus catching your death of a chill.

He rubs at his eyes and grimaces at how gritty they still feel even after washing. He goes back to drying his hair and flipping through the files of reports that Matako and the other ship captains had sent to him. Its mind numbingly boring stuff but it kept him busy tonight. Since this is the first hour he’s been able to breath tonight without some ghost memory wrapped around his heart or making his eye ache with phantom pain. Takasugi had just shut himself in his quarters and tried to ride it out with the most menial task he could find.

It didn’t really work until the last hour when his misery switched to being the sort of dragging feeling brought on by pushing close to an all nighter. His balance makes him sway when he’s standing and even after a bath he feels sick and clammy, cold and hot at once, and there’s an annoying tremor in his hands and limbs. Takasugi tries to mind his breath and remember how he used to go without sleep for days almost a decade ago. But the thing about becoming an adult who barely keeps himself well rested, fed properly, or stable to begin with, is that now he can’t do this as much. There’s hunger gnawing coldly at his stomach and sitting next to his futon is all he can do. Sure he could shove it down in a burst of adrenaline with a fight, training, keying himself up like in the war. But if he did that he wouldn’t sleep for near on four days and that’s really not what he wants.

Takasugi isn’t totally sure what he wants right now but he’s still not feeling great on the idea of sleep either. Days like this when the past comes calling when he’s awake never bode well for his mind while trying to rest. He sighs and reaches for his kiseru, striking a match and lighting the tobacco easily. He’s already gone through a lot tonight, but one more surely won’t hurt…

“Shinsuke?” He looks up, pipe between his teeth, at the sudden knock against the door frame. He takes aim and tosses the towel back in to the bathroom before standing and letting his visitor in.   
  
“Something happen?” Bansai is not one he expects to see wandering safe house halls at night. He’s dressed for sleep as well, pale blue yukata and a heavier robe plus socks, a folded blanket under one arm. Takasugi resists a shiver at the feeling of the much cooler air from the hall. But if there was trouble he’d be ignoring a lot more.

But instead the man just looks harder at him and then crosses his arms, leaning against the door. “Shinsuke it’s past five in the morning, I wanted to ask you the same.”   
  
It’s that late? Or well, early now. That explains him feeling like hell. He’s been a wreck for the entire night then, lovely. “Nothing, just got caught up in something. What are you even doing up then?” Two can play at the judging game. What is he, a teenager again? Bansai levels those gold eyes at him though and it’s not a look one can ignore.    
  
“I was getting a drink and an extra blanket since I daresay this place didn’t come with an ounce of warmth.” He remarks.   
  
“Hm, well, do that. Throw an extra blanket at Matako’s room then too.” He goes to slide the door shut but it’s grabbed and held open. Takasugi glares. “Bansai.”   
  
“...I could say you’re no good as a commander on no sleep, but I’m sure you’d keep going until you dropped dead.” That’s true. Takasugi raises a brow as if to say, what’s the problem then? “But I’ll say it’s personally worrying to see you not take care of yourself.” Ten years on and the guy can read him far too well. He should have never let that happen, never let someone start to guess at him so easily. But Bansai was far to skilled of an assassin and far too determined as a friend to stay in the dark. Takasugi sighs and looks back in to his room. “Shinsuke.”   
  
“What, are you going to knock me out?” He’d probably appreciate it at this point. He doesn’t even hide the tiredness in his voice now that he’s been caught, and he leans against the door frame as well, shoulder brushing Bansai’s hand.

“Nothing so uncouth, really.” In a flick of the wrists so fast he can only just see it, he’s drawn both his hands back and tosses the blanket over Takasugi’s head and tugs it around either side of him, pulling him right to his chest. And then he’s in his arms. This is only something that can be done at such an unholy hour when no one else is around. “You could have come by, I don’t sleep early when I’m composing and the company is usually nice, I daresay.”

Takasugi grumbles from his new soft cocoon of blanket and Bansai. It’s warmer like this and his body starts to relax and his limbs go loose. Already the familiar sense of his arms has banished much of his malaise, turned over exhaustion in to tiredness, and their talk pulls his mind back from the darker corners. “I’m the fucking commander, I can’t come running each time I have a bad night.” But he sighs and lets himself be carried inside to his bed. The light is switched off, his tobacco put out, his papers are nudged away all in a few smooth motions.

“When the whole planet is asleep and you’re miserable, anyone can ask for help. That’s just human.”   
  
“You know my stance on that too.”   
  
Bansai just laughs and hearing that sound up close turns it to a calming rumble. He lets his eye drift close for just a second and immediately opens it again, resisting sleep on instinct. But it’s a lost cause. 

The next time Bansai looks down at him, he’s out like a light and breathing softly. Normally they’re careful about spending nights together in safe houses, the crew can think what they like but rumors are rumors and one never knows the crumbs a spy would latch on to. But Bansai figures one night of them sleeping beside each other wouldn’t be an organization ending risk. And nightmares easily come calling on such disturbed sleep so...he’ll feel better staying. So he fixes the pillows and blankets and easily fits them together and is asleep in mere minutes.   
  
The next morning he shoos away any interruptions from the crew, stating top secret work they need to finish early now, and they’re not to be disturbed until he says so. Sleeping in also seems like a wise plan, especially considering that Takasugi wakes up exactly once to tell Matako and her helpers to just deliver their meals to his room until they’re done ‘working’. After that he smokes for a while before resting again, his body demanding he catch up on sleep after such a long night of stress eating away at him. And Bansai is only too happy to have a restful day as well, composing songs in his head to the tune of the persons calm breath beside him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I write the Kiheitai too soft? Perhaps. Do I care? Not at all. They need some time like this. And I had to write these two a little more established in a relationship at some point.
> 
> This chapter is also dedicated to the many times I've been up half the night for various reasons, sorry for projecting that on to you Takasugi.


	6. F: Fever

 You never really outgrow your childhood illnesses. Not completely anyways. Matako had more than one round of ear infections and strep throat in her first years of being part of the Kiheitai. She was always miserable, but knew how to manage it since it had been her personal yearly fight since she was a toddler apparently. It didn’t keep her down for long and she’s resilient as a result to most other things. Meanwhile Takasugi has always gotten respiratory infections; bronchitis, pneumonia, you name it, if he gets sick it probably settled in his chest. Him hiding the weeks of coughs after any major cold is a fairly normal affair since there comes a point where being bedridden brings too many reminders of his youngest days. He always shrugs away any concern about his smoking since he was like this before tobacco, so he may as well enjoy messing up his lungs on his own terms.

And Bansai was and still is, fever prone. To extremely high fevers. Once he was sick and when the medics finally got him to sit still for an examination, which took orders from the commander to make happen, he clocked in above 40C. And it was early morning so not even his highest. The medical team threatened to confine him to the infirmary for days unless he went to his room and actually let himself rest. It was a nasty negotiation.

Takasugi and Bansai as a result, ended up in the most childish competition ever of who had the worst childhood illnesses and highest fevers. Matako only watched the discussion and told the crew member serving them that night that he could go, it was going to be a long one. And to tell to infirmary to send up more medicine later that night. That had been a while ago now.

After all that Takasugi figured he knew what he was getting in to when he started feeling chilled, and sickly warm in his face, one afternoon. He put it down to tiredness at first, they’d been running a lot of jobs lately across the entire country and keeping all their information rings intact was a draining endeavor. His ears and jaw ache and he wanted nothing more than to sleep. And it was so early he didn’t want to change any plans. But then two hours later when he stands to see another group off the ship it feels like all the blood wants to fall out of his skull and his eyes start burning.

Fever for sure. The skin around his wrists aching as he shrugs on his haori is only a further confirmation. He’s sure he’ll be coughing by tonight so best to get everything done now before he’s useless. Takasugi sighs and brings his kiseru along for one last smoke as he meets Bansai and Matako in the halls. He notices though that Matako is the only chipper one today, overly chipper even, and normally Bansai replies to her at least a bit but he’s being oddly silent even for him. He squints and wonders if there’s a bit of pallor around his face. But as they move through the ships he puts it down to an oddity in the lights. And he can’t ask since they have to finish briefing this last bunch of crew...though he lets the other two do more of the actual talking.

Is that a crackle in Matako’s voice? No, his ears are certainly just getting stopped up. And that wasn’t a tired sigh from Bansai, he’s got to be imagining things. Right?

Well, after dragging for many endless minutes, they finally finish going over protocol with their new field spies and send them off. And after that they’re blessedly done for today. Takasugi sighs out a puff of smoke. “You two eat?”

Both of them suddenly look sheepish. That’s amusing. “Is that an offer for dinner?” Bansai says with a half smile.

“It would be if someone hadn’t given me the damn plague today-” He cuts off as his lungs finally decide to rebel and a sharp cough shakes him. Takasugi grumbles and quickly extinguishes the tobacco. No need to expose them any more than necessary.

And then Matako sneezes, a loud squeak of a sound that has her bounding for the nearest tissues in the closest empty rec-room. And Bansai tilts his sunglasses down just enough so that the circles under his eyes are visible. He is pale as a ghost right now, it’s not the lights. “I daresay we’re all in the same boat, I didn’t expect that, so maybe a meal together wouldn’t hurt.”  
  
“Sorry Shinsuke-sama...if we got you sick.” Matako says around her tissue, already fighting with watering eyes and slouching more now that she doesn’t have to put up a healthy appearance for the crew. “It just came outta nowhere!”  
  
He shrugs. It happens, what can they do? Misery loves company as they say. “My quarters then.”  
  
All three of them share a look. No one likes going to the medical crew. But if one says the other two should go, then they’ll certainly get dragged down as well. And then they’ll be confined to their individual rooms most likely. They can manage each other...right?

Sure.

It’s not like Bansai has to carefully badger Takasugi to eat enough, or he has to be reminded that no, shamisen playing while fevered is still too much effort, or that they both have to pile blankets at Matako when she starts shivering. It’s not like they’re all miserable but also have suddenly gotten a thousand times more stubborn about leaving each other alone, as well as being alone, but it’s not like anyone is going to admit to those things.  
  
It’s not like when the dinner serving crew members sneak word to the infirmary that their entire trio of officers are shivering to death that they deny all wrongdoing. It’s not like that all, it’s exactly like that and more, since mid fever scan Bansai just slumps like the life’s gone out of him. He’s creeping up to his old record and is so tired now as much as he tries to laugh it off. And Matako whines that no, she is not leaving her commander or her senpai, not when they’re ill and she’s also sick. Takasugi watches, and grudgingly lets himself be subjected to the swabs and swipes, and then frowns at the realization that he and Bansai might really be in a competition for the worst fever this week. He just quietly tells the younger of their medical team to just bring two cots up, it’s not worth moving them if they’re going to be this sick. The infirmary only has so many beds after all and seeing all their leaders ill would be a disaster for morale. This is a flimsy excuse but it works because it’s the truth.

Luckily they oblige and the other two are asleep sitting up before the extra bedding even gets to them. Takasugi is banned from smoking and so he eventually, after enough doses of various painkillers and cough suppressants, finds sleep hours earlier than his usual night owl habits dictate.

The next day is a muffled, fever blurred one for all of them. Even the slightest touch or movement sends aches and shivers through the body. Takasugi sits up so he won’t hack up a lung, dozing in and out of sleep against the wall as he flips through a few antique books he knows by heart. Occasionally he coughs and tries to muffle the sound so it doesn’t devolve into a fit, but he's only half successful. Bansai is the most lucid of them on first glance and manages to find enough supplies to keep working on compositions. Though any word to him usually ends in confused blinks, so he’s not doing half as well as he’d like to present, being the most washed out and fevered of all of them. Matako just curls up under her blankets until only her hair is visible, curses them both for giving her their colds since she never gets fevers this bad, and refuses to move unless absolutely necessary. Whenever she wakes up for a bit she’s not in a good mood but listening to the flip of pages and the scratching of a pen calms her back to sleep fast enough, and she starts talking more after lunch, still not happy but able to feel comforted enough to relax.

None of them are good at being sick. And honestly they’re grating on each other as much as they’re comforting each other. But Takasugi considers as they get their doses that night, that there’s no one he’d rather share a quick laugh with over the awful taste of medicine.

And they all stay until their fevers break, of course. That agreement was settled from the start, and simply went without saying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm Bansai and somewhat Takasugi, by the way, when it comes to being ill. Fever city, every single time. This prompt wanted to wander around and resist a solid idea but I like where it finally ended.
> 
> Also I really want to take a moment to thank every single person who's commented on this fic so far. I'm a bit shy to reply to comments and I'm never sure exactly what to say but each one has nearly brought me to tears because they really do mean so much. I haven't written and posted chapters in years so the encouragement and feedback is something I really treasure! Thank you so much!

**Author's Note:**

> The prompt list I'm using is linked below, if you're interested in where this is going! Thank you for reading, and I hope you'll stick around as I pluck through these and any other prompts that strike my fancy!
> 
> https://whumpster-dumpster.tumblr.com/post/180336248352/alphabetical-one-word-whump-prompts-a-ambush-b


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